


Reprogramming

by VictoriaG16



Category: Star Trek: The Next Generation
Genre: Gen, stuck in a jeffries tube
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-19
Updated: 2014-08-19
Packaged: 2018-02-13 11:19:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2148756
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VictoriaG16/pseuds/VictoriaG16
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ro and Geordi get stuck in a Jeffries Tube.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Reprogramming

**Author's Note:**

  * For [allamaraine](https://archiveofourown.org/users/allamaraine/gifts).



> have i ever mentioned how much i loooooove geordi and ro's friendship??? no??? remind me to do that more
> 
> i'm so so so sorry for how i write data. how do i write data. what.
> 
> actually how do i write anything
> 
> set a little after 5x24 "the next phase" but it actually has nothing to do with the episode.

“Can you pass me that dualitic inverter?” Geordi asked, eyes on the delicate power conduit and hand out to Ensign Ro, sitting cross-legged by his open engineering toolkit.

“That’s the one with the…” she began, peering into the foam-lined box, scanning its contents.

“Two-pronged metal tip, short handle, big power button in the – "

“This one?” She held up an ODN recoupler. Geordi shook his head, and she dug into the toolkit again, this time emerging with the right tool.

“Thanks,” Geordi said, aiming the inverter at the power conduit. A short burst of light, and the power conduit was once again thrumming with energy.

"That's it for this section," Geordi said, closing the maintenance hatch above his head.

"Where to next?" Ro asked, a little eager for this engineering work to be done. She had never liked the precise systems and their specifics back at the Academy and not much had changed in the past few years, but Geordi was at least amicable company.

"Just two sections down that way, then three more on the next deck, and we're done." He tried to give the ensign an encouraging smile, knowing that she preferred the helm while he preferred the engine room.

Dragging the toolkit behind her, Ro keyed the switch to open the door leading to the next section, but it remained closed. She tried again, this time jamming her finger harder on the button. Nothing.

"Got a manual override in that never-ending toolkit of yours?"

"I should," he answered, popping open the latch and rifling through the assorted tools before pulling out the device and handing it to Ro, who then attempted to open the door. No such luck.

"Huh. That's weird," Geordi said pensively. He tried his hand at the manual override, but the small door remained stubbornly closed.

He tapped his comm badge. "La Forge to Data." Silence. "Commander La Forge to Commander Data." More silence.

Ro took the cue to try hers as well, but after five fruitless attempts at communicating with anyone via the comm system, even she gave up.

"Guess we'll just have to wait it out until they get the systems back up," Geordi mumbled, taking a seat against the wall.

* * *

It was clear that Geordi hated not being in Engineering at a time like this, when something was wrong. Even in the small space of the Jeffires Tube, he fidgeted with anything he could get his hands on -- the tricorder, the comm badges, the burnt out power conduits they had collected, and everything else. His nervous energy made the growing pit of anxiety in Ro’s stomach pulse uncomfortably. Geordi normally seemed so put-together, it made her feel like something was really wrong.

* * *

"Can you tell if we're moving?" Ro asked, hating her own futility more and more with each passing second. "Normally, I can, but these small spaces mess me up."

Geordi shook his head. "I used to be really good at telling how fast we're going, back when I was helmsman. Just by the feel of it."

"Its kind of like the ship is shaking, but not really. Its hard to explain."

"No, no, I get it. That's how I feel it too." He offered an encouraging smile.

"I didn't know you used to be a helmsman," Ro remarked. "I always thought you were all about engineering from the start."

He grinned. "Oh, I was. Ask Commander Riker. I just decided to accept a position as helmsman when Captain Picard offered it to me."

“You went to the Academy with Commander Riker?”

“Yup. Class of 2357.”

Ro nodded. It had never occurred to her that Commander Riker and Lieutenant Commander La Forge were the same age. Not knowing what to say, she pondered this new information.

* * *

“How long has it been?” Ro asked for the sixth time in the past half hour. In total, they’d been stuck for over three hours now, and while Geordi had faith that Data and the rest of the engineering staff would find some way to get them out eventually, Ro’s patience was wearing thin, and his own was buckling.

“You asked me that five minutes ago, Ro.”

“Right.” She sighed and slumped against the cramped wall of the Jeffries Tube, trying to stretch her legs out as far as they would go in the confined space. Geordi, however, remained sitting cross-legged, shoulders hunched to avoid the low ceiling.

Ro tapped her comm badge again, hopes high and expectations low. “Ensign Ro to the Bridge.” No response. Knowing what the outcome would be, she didn’t bother to try engineering or the captain and crossed her arms tight across her chest.

* * *

Geordi had finally resigned himself to slouching against one wall of the Jeffries Tube, directly opposite Ro, whose right foot tapped rhythmically against the wall beside Geordi’s elbow. Two pairs of shoes sat, discarded, off to the side.

“Almost four hours now,” Geordi said, answering the question before she even opened her mouth to ask it. “Something must be really wrong.”

Ro snorted. “That’s comforting.”

Not knowing how to respond, Geordi returned his attention to the tricorder resting on his knee. Cradling it gently in his palm, he touched the tip of a long, thin tool to the exposed internal system of the device, producing a short, loud spark of electricity.

Lapsing into half-asleep wakefulness, Ro suddenly jumped awake, looking around wildly for the source of the noise. “What was that?”

“Nothing, nothing. I’m just trying to see if I can widen the scanning range of this tricorder a little bit. Its an older version, so they only scan a couple of hundred meters effectively, but the newest models – "

Ro held up her hand. “If you go on anymore, you’re going to lose me.”

Geordi nodded. “Sorry.”

“Nothing to be sorry about.” She sat back and sighed, gritting her teeth. Her skin felt hot, sweaty, and tight. She really hated being stuck like this.

"Ro, are you okay? You look a little -- "

"A little _what_?"

"Sick. You look a little sick and sometimes the tubes do this to people."

"Normally, I'm fine," she pointed out defiantly.

"We _have_ been in here for over four hours now. It's okay to be a little claustrophobic."

Ro exhaled sharply. "I just wish that there was something to do," she huffed. It's not the space, it's...not having anything to do."

Geordi sat pensively for a few moments, fingers absently tweaking the tricorder, having given up on widening the range. "Hey, I know you said you're no good at engineering, but it might help you take your mind off things." He held out the half disassembled device, the rest of the pieces cupped in his other hand.

Ro sighed, and gingerly picked up the tricorder. "What should I do with it?"

Geordi crawled across the small space to sit beside her. "Try reprogramming the scanning frequencies," he suggested.

"I'm going to need a little more information," she said, shoving the spare pieces in her pocket.

Geordi laughed, and guided her through the tedious work of reprogramming a tricorder.

* * *

"Geordi?"

Through sleepy ears, Geordi could hear someone calling his name. He grunted, opening his tired eyes. "How long was I out?"

"An hour, maybe," Ro answered.

He rubbed his eyes, finally casting his gaze at the entrance to the Jeffries Tube. "Data?"

"Yes," he answered. "Ensign Ro's reprogrammed tricorder emitted an electrical signal, which we traced back to this location, and were able to force open the Jeffries Tube doors."

"What happened?" Geordi asked.

"We slipped into a spacial distortion," Data answered, crouched in the small space. "It was invisible to our sensors until we exited it once again. It also disabled our communication systems and main computer functions. The emergency bulkheads triggered shortly before we lost main power."

Geordi nodded, following Data's now-retreating form down the tube, with Ro following shortly behind. "What's still down?"

"We have released all of the emergency bulkheads, but communications and internal sensors are still offline. Warp power is offline, but impulse is functioning."

Data pushed open the hatch leading into the corridor of deck 7. "I will inform the captain that you have been located."

"I'll head down to engineering," Geordi offered.

"And I'll see if I can offer a hand anywhere."

Data left for the bridge, and Ro was just walking away when Geordi called, "Wait, Ro, you reprogrammed that tricorder?" He looked at her with amazement. "Pretty good for someone who says they're not too good at engineering."

She shrugged. "Yeah, it's an old trick some of the older kids used to pull on Cardassian tricorders. Reprogram them to emit a high-frequency pulse. The Cardassians hated it." She smiled, deviously childlike.

"That's really clever. You did a good job, and I think you'd make a good engineer." He patted her shoulder, smiled, and bid her goodbye.


End file.
